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The US military is testing $40,000 surveillance drones that can fit in the palm of your hand
(Prox Dynamics) US Special Forces are experimenting with a drone that weighs only 18 grams.
US Special Forces are testing a tiny bug-like drone that could change the future of warfare.
The teeny flying robot, called the PD-100 Black Hornet 2, weighs 18 grams with cameras and fits in the palm of your hand. The device, which can fly for up to 25 minutes with a range of two miles, also features both regular and thermal cameras.
Designed by the Norwegian company Prox Dynamics, the drone’s minuscule size and embedded technology make it an ideal tool for covert missions. The British military began implementing the device with soldiers in 2013, and now the US military is apparently showing interest.
According to a report by Defense One, US Special Forces have obtained a “handful” of the PD-100 Black Hornets.
The stealth device can be flown autonomously with its GPS autopilot feature or it can be manually controlled. The device is so small it can be stored in a small pack that can be worn on the body for easy access.
While the device may look like a toy, it’s certainly not priced like one. The PD-100 Black Hornet 2 prices at about $40,000 for larger orders of the device, said Ole Aguirre, VP of business development for Prox Dynamics. But considering that the Pentagon plans to spend approximately $2.9 billion on unmanned systems for the fiscal year of 2016, according to the Drone Center at Bard College, the $40,000 price tag doesn’t seem so significant.
The US military is showing an increasing interest in tiny drones these days.
Reports earlier this week revealed that the military is in the early stages of developing its own mini-drones. According to Military.com, these drones are built to swarm in a manner that would confuse enemy radar systems. In other words, the small devices could potentially overwhelm the enemy by providing so many targets that they find it hard to take them down.
The devices could also be used to cover an area with sensors so that they could survey an area and collect data.
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